Welcome to another feature in "the state of reality TV", where we take the time to examine the future of reality television through the eyes of some people who know it best -- former stars of the genre.
To see other interview from the series follow the link here. My chat this time is with Mike Borassi, a former contestant from "Survivor: Samoa" who brought an entertaining perspective and drive into the game -- only for him to be forced out due to injury in the second episode. He still managed to remain one of the more popular pre-jury boots in recent memory, and he has plenty to say about the game that made him famous.
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Matt: So what are your thoughts on the twist for the new season?
Mike: I heard it's 'old vs. young'. I think its great. I wish my show would have done that, you know? I was the oldest one.
Do you think you would have had a better chance?
I think things would have been different. Actually, my getting eliminated when it did really changed the outlook of the game. Betsy and I were kind of talking about Russell, saying something's not right with him, and I think I would have been able to ... Betsy wouldn't have gotten eliminated in that tribal council, Russell would have got exposed right away, and the whole show would have been completely different.
Then we might not have seen him on ['Heroes vs. Villains']. I'll precede this by saying I was suffering from complete Russell overkill last year.
Me too. I just thought it was 'enough's enough'. Even with the other players -- Parvati and [Amanda] -- they've been on three times already.
I'm a little torn on the 'All-Stars' concept because we've seen people like Parvati and James three times. Let's get some new blood on here!
Exactly. I've been telling my fans -- I get a few autograph requests and stuff -- to write in and say you want the next 'All-Stars' to be people who were voted out first or medically evacuated so they can get a chance to share their stuff.
I did an article about this last March, the 'Second Chance' idea. So are you saying you would want to be on it?
Definitely, yeah. Like I said, when I got eliminated an hour later I was 100% fine.
Who else would you want to see on there?
A lot of the first people off, like Marisa and from Brazil, that girl Carolina. Then from my show Russell [Swan] got medically evacuated. People who got eliminated really early in the show.
The whole way I think about it is that you take early boots and have the cut-off be either the merge or the start of the jury.
Right. They have to have the personality, too. Even the producers said to me, 'we were really counting on you to go further' because they liked me. Even Jeff was like 'man, I'm really sorry to see you go. You were really entertaining'. You didn't even get to see all my stuff.
I know CBS really liked you, because I've heard you were close to being on 'Tocantins'. So can you explain a little bit of that for people who don't know the story?
Yeah, I'm probably the only one to make the show twice. I was down in Brazil, I was there for the whole pre-week thing, and they said 'get ready, step on the truck', and then 'Mike, go to the medical tent'. I was like 'what? The game's starting'.
As it turns out, I was a lot heavier then -- and it was 110 degrees -- and my blood pressure was 190 / 80 and I also had sleep apnea that I wasn't aware of because I was sleeping next to the shrink and she and the other players heard me snoring during the night. They said, 'we're going to bump you to the next one, because these are problems that can be fixed'.
I came back, I had a jaw operation that fixed my sleep apnea, I lost 60 pounds, I got into better shape, and they sent me back on Samoa.
Since you've watched 'Tocantins', how do you think you would have done?
Again, I think I would have changed the game. Coach was the villain and the personality that they played on, but I think I would have made things different. I would have been the one going up against Coach, and I was actually on his team.
Before the game started, they picked the tribes and the young kid [Spencer] was the substitute who jumped in for me. He thanked me profusely at the reunion show! I actually probably would have done some things with Coach, because I used to be a football coach, and I would have probably been like 'what is this guy doing with the whole Dragon Slayer and his esoteric approach to being a warrior'.
That's the beauty of the game. There's an unexpected turn every day.
Going back even further, how long have you been watching the show and what made you want on?
From day one, when I saw the first one -- and it was one of the first reality shows -- I remember watching it and saying 'I really like this'. I hated Hatch, liked Rudy, and I got involved. I watched every single one, and over the years I was like 'I could do that'.. My wife said to me 'why don't you apply, big shot?', so I did in they called me when I was in the finals. Next thing I know, I was flying to Brazil.
Since you are such a big fan and you actually applied, do you feel they are pushing too many recruits onto the show these days?
Well, obviously there's a pattern to the members. There's the old guy, there's the two or three good-looking blondes, the two or three buff guys ... they have a mix that they try to fill. Some are recruited -- Ben was recruited on my show -- Betsy and black Russell, they were applying for years. They tried 10, 12 times trying to get on.
They do recruit -- in Brazil, [Sydney] was recruited. They fill the slots however they can, but they have a physical group that they want. If you fit the physical needs, you go by the personality.
Watching your season and 'Heroes vs. Villains', what do you think is the biggest problem 'Survivor' has right now?
Basically it's the repetition of the 'All-Star' shows. Other than that the show is great -- if you let the show be itself and do what it does, it will go on forever. The thing about 'Survivor' that I love is that it's 1,000 times harder than it looks on on TV, and they take people and make them do things they would never do in their ordinary lives -- whether it's just surviving or making shelter or finding food and staying dry. I think it's great and it really does change and affect people in a pretty profound way. Everyone comes out a different person. The only other show I can think that's like that is your show, 'Beauty and the Geek'.
They have that similarity there. I think what's really interesting about 'Survivor' is that it's not just the cameras, but it's actual survival. There's no other show that puts people through as much physical pain.
Without a doubt. It's 1,000 times harder -- it's no joke. People say, 'did they give you food'? They put out there with the clothes on your back and your wits. You either have to get with the program or you'll get voted out. Then you can get injured -- the first night I fell into a banyan tree and separated my shoulder. I didn't tell anybody because you're like a wounded animal and they'll get rid of you.
We all saw how well you did in that last challenge.
I really surprised those guys. When the challenge started and I did that [first hit] -- there's like 150 people there, cameramen and crew. I heard everyone go 'whoa'.
If you were able to have a meeting with Mark Brunett and talk about changes to 'Survivor', what would you suggest?
You know, they are pretty creative -- over the years they added the hidden idol, and they did do the ethnic [twist], they did an old vs. young segment. I think they're pretty good at what they're doing, and I'm sure they'll come up with something in Nicaragua. You watch it and it's never the same. I know with me -- anytime I think they're voting someone out, it's never that person.
You mention the idol, so I'll ask you -- did you feel like the last two seasons were idol-crazy?
It is a good twist and it can change the game drastically, especially Russell. I think it's another dimension of gameplay.
When you were out there, did you try looking for it?
You know, I didn't start playing the game until it was too late. I figured everyone would be like 'let's get to know each other. Let's build the shelter, let's make the camp. Then the alliances would start'. But Russell started in right away.
The first day I made the commitment -- 'listen, I'm a chef. I'll do the fire and cook any food if we get it.'. I was tending the fire one day and I looked up and I was like 'where's everybody?' Everyone was off talking and making deals. Then Russell came to me and said they were talking about getting [me] out. Then I started panicking. It's amazing -- when you think you're going to get voted out, you think you're gonna get whacked. And you're like 'what do I do? Save me', and you panic. Which I did, and then [Russell] came back and said it was Marisa.
Are there any other reality shows you watch?
I mentioned earlier, I really liked 'Beauty and the Geek'. That was the only other reality show where there was a profound change in the players. The geeks' lives were changed, and some of the girls were awakened to these guys being real people.
Other than that, I can't stand 'Amazing Race'. To me, it's like watching every contestant doing the same thing ... I try to watch it, I don't like it. 'Big Brother' is like ... are you kidding me? This is a joke. I tried to watch it once. Then the other ones like on VH1 are like ridiculous -- they are parodies of reality shows.
I really can't say that I enjoy watching any of the others. I'll say I watch 'Wipeout' -- it's just a joke, you know what I mean?
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Thanks for Mike Borassi for chatting with me, and check back this weekend for a chat with Mike Skupin from 'Survivor: Australia'.
More interviews from "The State of Reality TV"
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